Series1 Needs to Use Phone After Instant Cake - How Can I Use TurboNet?

[MarkGoldstein66494]

Ran Instant Cake Special w/networking software on a new drive for my Series1. The Instant Cake process worked flawlessly. At the conclusion of the install the directions say that you will need to use the "delete everything" function on the Series1 when it first boots. However when I get the first boot, the Series1 insists on the "guided setup process."

Start the process and change the "dial prefix" to ",*401" so that the Tivo will use the TurboNet card which I had previously installed. It tries to connect using the Ethernet connection but fails. I can see the WebPlus HTTP interface on my home LAN so I know Ethernet connectivity is working. I can see the message on the WebPlus about the "phone connection failure." I can't find any way to get the Series1 to use the Ethernet connection for updating.

I then tried the phone connection. It consistently gets almost through the 20-30 minute "downloading program guide" and it fails.

What is the secret for getting the Tivo to use the Ethernet connection during the "guided setup?"

Thanks.

[Lou Jacob]

The correct prefix for using the TurboNet card is

,#401

This should work during guided setup as long as TiVo's servers are accessible and there are no other problems on your network.

Not sure why things didn't work for you when you attempted to use your phone line, could either be issues with TiVo' servers, or a problem with your hard drive. Its probably safe to assume its not your hard drive UNLESS you did not run diagnostics on it before installing it in your TiVo.

[MarkGoldstein66494]

The correct prefix for using the TurboNet card is

,#401

This should work during guided setup as long as TiVo's servers are accessible and there are no other problems on your network.

Not sure why things didn't work for you when you attempted to use your phone line, could either be issues with TiVo' servers, or a problem with your hard drive. Its probably safe to assume its not your hard drive UNLESS you did not run diagnostics on it before installing it in your TiVo.

Lou -- You mentioned "running diagnostics before installation." I apologize for not paying attention to the CD or other online documentation but I missed any reference to "running diagnostics" after a Instant Cake install. Would you please provide me with a reference to instructions on how to perform the diagnostics?

Note that I was using the proper ,#401 sequence on the dialing prefix. Just wrote in incorrectly in the forum post.

Thanks.

[Lou Jacob]

As a matter of 'best practices' its a good idea to run the manufacturer's diagnostics on any drive before you configure and install it in your TiVo. Its not mentioned in the instructions, but I do mention it here in practically any thread where anyone complains of strange behavior or problems with a TiVo.

I can't tell you how to do it, explicitly - but every drive manufacturer has a 'free' program you can download from their site; connect your drive to your PC and run the diags on it.

Always a good idea to do that to rule out any defects in the drive and avoid problems down the road.

[MarkGoldstein66494]

As a matter of 'best practices' its a good idea to run the manufacturer's diagnostics on any drive before you configure and install it in your TiVo. Its not mentioned in the instructions, but I do mention it here in practically any thread where anyone complains of strange behavior or problems with a TiVo.

I can't tell you how to do it, explicitly - but every drive manufacturer has a 'free' program you can download from their site; connect your drive to your PC and run the diags on it.

Always a good idea to do that to rule out any defects in the drive and avoid problems down the road.

Thanks. I ran Spinrite on the drive before running Instant Cake. I have found Spinrite to work better for my non-Tivo drives at diagnosing problems. Probably good to run it again since the drive is still easy to get to.

[kkimmell]

I don't see any resolution here. Was there one? I ask because I bought and downloaded InstantCake TWP for Series1 Standalone TiVo. I burned the disc and ran the setup and everything seemed to work fine.

It boots up and I see the green light go active on the network port so at a minimum the NIC is functioning. However I am unable to get any further than mentioned in the original post here and I have set the prefix and even disabled the "detect dial-tone" function.

Any more pointers on getting this working with the TurboNet? The modem isn't an option for me as it died years ago.

[kkimmell]

UPDATE: I started a separate thread so as not to hijack this one:

http://www.dvrupgrade.com/forums/showthread.php?t=547